Long a part of the community, the Wellesley Township Fall Fair is giving a boost to what will become a new fixture in the village, last week donating $1,600 towards a new multi-use recreation facility.
The money presented July 31 came from a bottle drive, with matching funds from the fair board.
The fair board raised $1,587 through the collection of more than 8,000 cans and bottle, enough to fill a trailer and two pickup trucks. Originally, the organization had planned to split the proceeds between the new rec. centre and the fall fair, but at a board meeting July 20, members voted to round up the contribution to $800 and provide a matching amount themselves to support the arena-replacement project, slated for property at the corner of Hutchison and Queen’s Bush roads.
It was also a chance for the fair board to show its appreciation for the community’s support over the years, says board member Wendy Richardson.
“Volunteering itself is very gratifying. It gives us a chance to grow and learn as a person. There is always the opportunity to meet some really awesome people in the community and make connections. For me, personally, I really enjoy working with youth, getting to know these future leaders and hopefully being a stepping stone for them along the way. It’s not just about raising money, it’s about supporting the community,” said Richardson, a bottle drive volunteer as well as an organizer for their Community Unity Flower Garden Afghans project.
Joanne Stewart has been on the fair board for more than 10 years, and her family has been involved for some 75 years. With a long history, it’s no wonder she was eager to help raise funds for the community.
“We as a fair board thought as members of the community we would be utilizing the facilities in the future also. We know that we’re going to be starting to ramp up some fundraising in the fall, we just started to kick off the fundraising doing this initiative,” said Stewart, the board’s vice-president.
“We’re in the plans of doing a drive-thru dinner to celebrate what would have been the fair. We’re doing it the Saturday before, and we’re putting together a virtual exhibits book – that’s just being finalized right now,” noted Stewart about the events they have planned for this year’s fair on September 14-15, which will be virtual due to the lingering pandemic.
This year’s theme is ‘Community Unity.’ Now celebrating its 168th year, the Wellesley Township Fall Fair will include activities such as a scarecrow competition, a scavenger hunt around the township, the picking of a new fall fair ambassador and a few virtual competitions where people can enter photos to win prizes.
